Friday, July 31, 2009

State of the Economy

Here's a sight you wouldn't have seen until this last year: A UPS Freight truck hauling a load of hay.

Yep, that's right, it's really UPS Freight. I sure did a double take.

It turns out that these UPS trucks are subcontracted to take loads of pipes from California to Utah. But in order to make the trip worthwhile, they need to haul something back to California (that's called a backhaul). Someone figured out that hay would be a good load.

So a couple of the UPS trucks showed up on our ranch yesterday and got loaded with hay.

This friendly driver said they started backhauling hay about a year ago. She seemed to really like her job.

I guess you might say that some creative options are being explored to make a profit in the current economy. Have you seen some other creative ways to make a buck?

3 comments:

If the water ever dries up there (let's HOPE not), a clever person might try their hand at drought-tolerant herbs rather than alfalfa, like they are doing out toward Reno and in Utah. Probably too cold for wine grapes where you are, but gosh they can be grown in awfully hot, rocky, dry soil (like Southern France around Chateauneuf where there IS no soil per se, just rocks).

About Me

Hi! I'm Gretchen, an ecologist, rancher's wife, mother, writer, and dreamer. I've lived and worked in three of the four North American deserts and visited the fourth. This blog is about what it's like to live in the rural high desert on a ranch, spending lots of time outdoors with kids, and our journey to live more sustainably. To learn more about the area, click here. If you'd like to contact me, leave a comment (I love comments!) or email me at desertsurvivor @ live.com.